


Means So Little

by mggislife2789



Category: Criminal Minds
Genre: Gen, Haircuts, Long Hair, Reader-Insert, Short Hair
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-25
Updated: 2018-07-25
Packaged: 2019-06-15 20:53:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 751
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15421389
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mggislife2789/pseuds/mggislife2789
Summary: Disclaimer: I don't own any of these characters or their original stories. This is only for fun. It's where my brain goes after the credits roll. No copyright intended. Better safe than sorry. ;)





	Means So Little

Never before had you thought that anyone at work noticed you, but it became painfully obvious when you cut your hair. And not for the better. Honestly, you’d rather have had them never notice you. 

After contemplating a haircut for years and always being too chicken to actually do it, you went for it. Instead of the long, silky locks that had basically become synonymous with you as a person, you chopped it all off and went for a pixie cut with a bit of fringe. For so many years you were certain you didn’t have the face to pull it off but then you decided screw it - you wanted to do it so you did. And you actually liked the way you looked, but then work happened. It’s not that you didn’t like the way you looked anymore, but you hated having that kind of attention on you - like someone was picking you apart solely based on looks.

“Woah, you cut your hair!” Followed by that intake of breath that told you in no uncertain terms that he thought you looked better before.

“Wow.”

“Oh my god, I can’t believe you actually cut your hair.”

A chorus of unsolicited comments from people you knew and people you didn’t bombarded you as you walked in that morning - and that was all before you’d even gotten to your desk. Awesome. You were an invaluable member of the Bureau, basically a secretary for the entire floor making sure everyone got where they needed to go when they needed to go there, but your job also went largely unnoticed by everyone, which is why it was so off-putting when you had all eyes on you. 

Most of the time, you interacted with the BAU. Probably because they were always out of the office so you tended to offer your services when filling out paperwork. They were nice people, though occasionally annoying. Like right now. “Oh wow,” JJ said sharply. “You look so different!” You hated that word. In your experiences, different always had a negative connotation so that’s immediately where your mind jumped even if it wasn’t what she meant.

“Nooo!” Emily said, her head popping up at the sound of JJ’s voice. “Y/N, you cut your hair! I’ve always loved your hair!” Which of course meant she didn’t now. When she saw the look on your face, she added quickly. “I like this too don’t get me wrong but I’ve always been jealous of your hair.”

“I-It was time for a change. I’ve always had it, you know? I just needed something different.” She seemed to understand but she didn’t say anything else, which left you even more self-conscious than you had been walking in the door. The girls had come in early and Penelope had teased that she was going to hold a mock funeral for your long hair. 

After swallowing all those comments, you sat at your desk and buried yourself in paperwork, ensuring you didn’t have to glance up at anyone and see the looks on their faces. About 30 minutes later, Hotch walked past your desk and gave you a soft smile but said nothing - it was the most consistent reaction of them all. If Hotch of all people had said something you’d have been convinced that the world was ending. Rossi was out for the day so you didn’t have to deal with anything from him good or bad. Thank God for that.

“Oh, Y/N, why would you cut those luscious locks?” Morgan asked. You bit your lip to keep from saying something you shouldn’t, but you were hot with anger. It wasn’t their hair, why did it matter? Why was long hair such a thing that people held onto? What was so wrong with short hair?

You were biting so hard you could swear you tasted blood. “I think you look great with long or short hair.” Someone spoke from behind you. The soft voice told you it was Spencer. “…Y/N.” He swallowed hard like he was embarrassed. “Hair means very little in the scheme of things.”

“Thank you Spencer. I just felt like I needed a change is all.”

“You don’t need to justice yourself to me…” He said softy before adding. “Or anyone. Personally, I think you look like one of those punk chicks in school I always liked but never had a chance with.”

Smiling, you tuned the rest of the team out. “Who says you don’t have a chance now?”


End file.
